Enhance Your Services With SEO Outsourcing for Web Designers

Delivering a site with perfectly selected fonts, curated images, and impressive layouts is just the beginning of a web designer’s job. Soon, your clients might realize they need more than just killer designs to garner an audience. 

Businesses want well-designed sites that look good, rank high in search engine results, and consistently generate organic traffic. But more often than not, web designers aren’t search engine optimization (SEO) experts. 

Are you aiming to adopt a holistic approach to your web design services? This article will cover the key benefits of SEO outsourcing for web designers, the types of services to outsource, and common missteps to avoid when taking this approach.

Why Outsource SEO Services to a Third Party?

Outsourcing SEO tasks is a strategic move that gives your web design business additional life in the market. Just as someone might want to outsource web design to you, here’s why you might want to outsource SEO to a third party.

• Get specialized expertise: Reliable SEO experts know the ins and outs of the field, use the most advanced tools, and keep track of all the changes and updates to the latest algorithms, so you’ll never follow outdated SEO trends. 
• For scalability reasons: All businesses aim to scale, but once you do, you’ll want to be able to cope with the influx of new clients and projects. Outsourcing comes with added flexibility and a lot less overhead than in-house efforts.
• More time to focus on web design: You’re not an SEO expert, and you’d rather focus on your core tasks. With time to concentrate on your specialty rather than worrying about technical intricacies, you can create and innovate to a much higher degree.
• Improved client satisfaction: There’s something inherently attractive about an all-encompassing solution, enticing clients to come to you for complete web strategies.
• Competition: One of the best ways to stay competitive is to diversify your offerings. Outsourcing can allow you to strengthen your web design services while also providing top-notch SEO services.

If you form a successful outsourcing partnership, adding SEO to your service packages can lead to revenue growth, help convert potential customers, and elevate your brand as an all-in-one option.

What SEO Services Should Web Designers Outsource?

Almost all SEO services are related to web design, as they come together to improve web performance and search visibility. Here are some essential SEO services you should consider outsourcing:

Keyword research and content strategy

Keyword research is synonymous with online visibility, considering that clients will use keywords in search engines in order to find the specific service they need. 

Professional SEO strategists can put together a high-quality content strategy that includes important algorithm factors like keyword usage and internal linking, meeting the needs of both your target audience and Google requirements.

Image SEO and alt text optimization

You can even outsource optimization for visual elements like pictures and graphics. This includes carefully written alt text and appropriate image compression for fast loading times. All these elements work together to optimize website accessibility and help your site rank in image search results.

On-page optimization for site speed and mobile responsiveness

SEO experts can take your beautiful web design elements and add on a layer of optimization, enhancing all your on-page items, like formatting, title tags, and other content for all devices. There may be nuances related to optimization that you don’t know about, including the role of structured data in search engine understanding.

Link building for design-focused websites

Knowing how to link build is one thing, but outsourcing link building to experts with specific knowledge on how to do it for design-focused websites can make a huge difference. They’ll understand which design-related websites are most useful for link building and how to create shareable content to organically attract links.

How To Select the Right SEO Outsourcing Partner

Handling the constantly evolving nature of SEO is a challenge in itself, but a reliable partner will be able to prove their mettle and mastery. Choosing an outsourcing partner is an important decision that requires you to consider the following:

Evaluate SEO expertise in design-related SEO

An effective SEO partner should be proficient in design-related SEO, focusing their efforts on optimizing the visual content you’ve used on the site and marrying the aesthetics with searchability. They might be especially good at balancing design and functionality, for example.

Choose between freelancers, agencies, and recruitment firms

SEO outsourcing partners aren’t all firms—they can be freelancers, digital marketing agencies, or even recruitment companies.

Freelancers are more affordable in general and work more intimately with you (or your in-house team) to develop the right strategies and game plan. On the other hand, they may require more vetting, as technical skills can vary. Recruitment companies can help you screen and hire SEO professionals more easily.

Agencies will provide more comprehensive SEO coverage. They have the capacity to handle more demanding projects but may not have the same flexibility.

Set clear SEO objectives and expectations to avoid common pitfalls

You’ll want to be on the same page as your SEO partner at all stages of your collaboration. With a formal agreement and plenty of calls and chats, you’ll be able to develop a realistic timeline and key performance indicators and avoid the stressors of miscommunication.

Steps To Start Outsourcing SEO as a Web Designer

We understand that your expertise is in web design, not sourcing SEO freelancers. We’re here to help. Here’s how you can effectively start outsourcing SEO:

1. Define the SEO services you need

Not all SEO outsourcing services are created equal, and they can cover a wide range of strategies, which is why you’ll need to be clear about what you need. There are essentially two main categories of SEO: technical and creative.

You might need one or the other or both. Technical SEO involves tasks like optimizing page speed and auditing the site’s performance, while creative SEO focuses on UX design and content creation.

2. Research reliable SEO outsourcing companies

Research the SEO outsourcing companies you plan to shortlist. After all, you’ll be offering these services to clients and want them to be high quality. 

Whether you get a recommendation from your professional network or perform your own online search, look at client reviews and testimonials, conduct firsthand interviews, and compare and contrast their offerings with those of other companies.

If you’re looking for a place to start, see our list of top outsourcing providers below.

3. Communicate clearly and manage expectations

It’s tempting to believe that hiring an SEO partner will solve all of your digital marketing woes, but things are usually more nuanced than that. Articulate your SEO goals and the range of services you need, and put regular check-ins into your calendar to keep all parties on track.

Top 3 SEO Outsourcing Companies for Web Designers

Ready to kick-start your search? Below are our top three picks (in no particular order) for SEO outsourcing companies, including specialized agencies and recruitment firms.

1. Near

(If you aren’t your own biggest fan, who will be?)

Near is the perfect end-to-end solution to find, hire, train, and pay remote experts from Latin America. Our pool of over 35,000 pre-vetted candidates includes SEO specialists who can comfortably integrate into your workflow. 

We handle all the admin work and compliance requirements so that you can easily bring in your new SEO partner and start reaping the benefits without the typical headaches of hiring.

2. SEOreseller

With its three-tiered SEO white-label offerings, SEOreseller touches on all aspects of SEO, including monthly reporting, on-page optimization, technical SEO, website auditing, and keyword integration. 

Its team of experts can work with you to develop a customized white-label strategy and services dedicated to optimizing websites.

3. White Shark Media

White Shark Media is all about visibility, using national and local SEO tactics to fit your sites to search engine algorithms. With its personalized SEO strategies, link building, content writing, and keyword research services, you can provide full in-house SEO solutions for your clients.

Common Pitfalls To Avoid When Outsourcing SEO

Even if you aren’t the most SEO-savvy, you should familiarize yourself with unethical practices and ineffective tactics that some SEO outsourcing companies might use.

SEO is a long-term strategy that requires effort, skill, and patience. Be wary of companies that sell quick results or claim to find loopholes in algorithms. These superficial improvements and one-off boosts in numbers are often called “vanity metrics.” 

While they might look good on paper, they don’t do much for your clients’ sites in the long run.

Avoid providers that use black-hat SEO tactics to influence search engine rankings at all costs. These include techniques like keyword stuffing, buying backlinks, and reporting competitors. These methods will likely lead to penalties and, in worst-case scenarios, the deindexing of your clients’ sites. 

Final Thoughts

Expanding your offerings as a web designer to include SEO is a smart choice in a competitive marketplace, especially one that relies on visibility to succeed. With a strong online presence that is both visual and tactical, you can offer your clients a full-service solution and added value.

Want to deliver results that go beyond great design? Book a free, no-commitment call with Near to speak directly with a hiring expert. We’ll help you look for ideal talent, all while enjoying overhead cost savings of up to 70%.